Mel sighed as she looked into one of Taylor's mirrors, the large purple bruise on the side of her face having developed black and blue shades as well. Just where every girl wants to have a giant bruise, she thought. Knowing that there wasn't much she could do about it and that the bruise would go away on its own eventually, Mel put Taylor's mirror back and focused her attention on her next problem.

It had been three days since she'd woken up after her accident and everyone had gone back to treating her the same way they always did. Everyone except for Jackson. He had completely ignored her, only nodding at her in acknowledgment whenever she said "hi" or "good morning". The only thing she could think of was that he probably felt awkward after she realized that he'd shared his sleeping bag with her when she was sick. She decided that before confronting Jackson, she needed some advice and no one would've been more surprised than her if you told her a couple of weeks ago that the person she was seeking help from was Taylor.

Mel took a break from doing the laundry and went in search of the blonde, finally finding her sunning herself on the beach instead of digging for oysters like she was supposed to be. "Taylor?"

The girl startled and threw herself forward and onto her knees, "I was just finishing taking my break! You should see how many oysters I've found…" Taylor's voice drifted away as she looked over and saw that it was Mel who'd found her. "Oh. Hey, Mel, I thought you were Daley" Taylor brushed the sand off her hands and sat back on her towel.

Mel smirked, "So, how many oysters have you found?"

Taylor waved her arm around, "Enough, but I'll find a few more before I bring them back."

Sitting down in the warm, dry sand beside Taylor's towel, Mel took a deep breath before she spoke, "I need your advice."

Taylor's head whipped around and she lowered her sunglasses down to the bridge of her nose to eye Mel before pushing them up to rest on the top of her head, "You do?"

Mel nodded and Taylor grinned, "Okay, what about?"

"Jackson's been ignoring me and I want to ask him about it but I'm not sure I should."

"What do you think his problem is?"

"I'm not positive," Mel shrugged. "I thought it might be because of me finding out he was the one who shared his sleeping bag with me. I don't know why that would make him mad, though."

Taylor smiled happily, "I don't think that's what's bothering him."

"Well, what do you think it is?"

"I have an idea, but I think you should talk to him before I say anything."

"You're not helping me, you know," Mel would have thought that Taylor'd be dying to share her opinions.

"Sorry, but that's all the advice I'm giving until you talk to him. Once you do that, come find me again," Taylor smiled before putting her sunglasses on again and laying down to enjoy the heat from the sun.

Mel pursed her lips but did as Taylor suggested and went to find Jackson. Now would be the best time since everyone was busy working and thankfully Jackson's job for the day had been to cut down trees. This meant Mel would have privacy when she talked to him. As she made her way to the small grove of trees Jackson said he'd be at she didn't see him, but she did see Eric walking towards her with two of the empty jugs.

He smiled as he saw her, "Hi, Mel." He went to move past her to go to the stream where they got their water when Mel called his name.

"Hey, Eric?" He stopped when she called and Mel made her way towards him. "Have you seen—Oh!" Mel's question was cut short when her foot caught on the root of a tree. She stumbled and would've fallen if Eric hadn't dropped the containers he was holding and caught her.

"I think that knock on the head made you a little clumsy," Eric smirked and Mel laughed. And this was how Jackson found them when he appeared on the trail, a water bottle in his hand.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Jackson wasn't sure what he wanted to do more, break Eric's arm or his leg. He'd gone to get a bottle of water from camp and come back to find Mel in Eric's arms, both of them laughing and smiling. Jackson clenched his jaw and stormed past them, ignoring the sound of Mel calling his name and going back to the grove of trees he'd been working in. He threw his bottle down and grabbed the camp knife, hacking into one of the tree trunks with newfound rage. He cut it down with a few hits and moved on to the next one.

"Jackson?" Mel's voice stopped him mid-swing and he turned to face her, not saying a word. "I need to talk to you."

"What about?"

"I want to know why you've been ignoring me for the last few days."

"I haven't been ignoring you."

Mel got a sad look in her eyes, "Yes, you have. Did I do something wrong?"

"No, we're good."

Mel nodded but he could tell she didn't believe him, "I also wanted to thank you for, um, taking care of me the other night." She blushed a little and Jackson knew she was talking about him sharing his sleeping bag with her.

"You're welcome," Jackson started chopping at the tree again. Before he could stop himself, he spoke again, "Sorry about interrupting before." He heard the bitterness in his voice and hoped Mel overlooked it.

"Interrupting what?" Jackson stopped attacking the tree again and turned to look at Mel, whose eyes were clouded with confusion.

"You and Eric," Jackson spit the words out.

Mel's eyebrows scrunched together before understanding dawned in her eyes, "Oh...I'm not...we're not together."

"I know what I saw, Mel."

"I tripped and Eric caught me. That's all."

"Look, you don't have to explain anything to me."

"But Jackson, I—"

"It's fine, Mel. I blew it, okay? That day Taylor and Eric played your video for everyone to hear, I should've...but it doesn't matter now. You already said you'd moved on and obviously you have."

Mel just stood there and stared at him before she quietly said, "I lied."

Jackson's heart seemed to stop beating, "What?"

"I lied. I didn't want things to be awkward between us and I didn't want to lose you as a friend so I lied. I never stopped loving you, I just—" Jackson didn't let Mel finish her sentence. Instead, he closed the gap between them and kissed her. He wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her closer. She loved him. Jackson couldn't stop the way his heart beat faster or the way his mind raced with this new information. She loved him and he was never letting her go.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Mel couldn't let Jackson think that she was dating Eric. And what did he mean when he said he "blew it"? She just knew she couldn't take him not talking to her anymore and she needed to tell him how she felt. Of course, after she told him, he might not talk to her ever again. Shoving that thought to the back of her mind, Mel started talking before she could change her mind. She admitted she'd lied about not having a crush on him and she told him she loved him.

Before Mel could blurt anything else out, though, Jackson had suddenly appeared in front of her and kissed her. Instead of thinking about what was happening, Mel shut her eyes and kissed him back. His hands moved from her jaw to her back and she felt him pull her closer as she wrapped her arms around his neck. After a little while they broke apart, leaning their foreheads together.

"I love you, too," Jackson whispered.

"Good, because if you liked Taylor I would've had to switch schools once we got off this island."

Jackson stood a little straighter and squinted down at her, "Why would you think I liked her?"

Mel shrugged, "You guys seemed to be getting closer and usually guys can't resist her."

"I never thought of Taylor as anything other than a friend. What about you and Eric?" Jackson frowned.

"We're just friends. But it's nice to know you get jealous over me," Mel grinned and Jackson stole another kiss.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!" Taylor squealed with happiness. After spending another hour together in the grove, Mel had reluctantly returned to doing the laundry and Jackson went back to chopping down trees. When it was time for dinner, Jackson and Mel came to the firepit holding hands, which caused a variety of reactions from the rest of the group. Nathan and Daley looked shocked and surprised, Lex didn't really seem to care too much, Eric just smirked, and Taylor was bouncing up and down with excitement.

"Finally, something fun happens on this island!" Taylor beamed at everyone.

Eric just rolled his eyes, "It would've happened soon enough anyway."

"How are we the only ones that had no idea?" Nathan gestured between himself and Daley.

Jackson and Mel quietly left the group to their discussion and walked down the beach where they'd be hidden by the rocks. As the couple held hands and kissed, both with smiles that were permanently etched on their faces, they silently promised to hold on to one another no matter what. Because when you're lucky enough to find the person you're meant to be with, you keep them close, you cherish them, and you never let go.